Explore Paris with ArcGIS Online

In this lesson, you'll create a map of Paris, France, to learn the basics of working with maps in ArcGIS Online. Learn how to navigate, create, and save a map. Search for and mark locations, change the basemap, and add layers.

This lesson was last tested on October 25, 2021.

Requirements

• User, Publisher, or Administrator role in an ArcGIS organization (get a free trial)

Explore Paris with ArcGIS Online

Navigate the map

You can move around a map by panning, zooming, and searching.

1. Sign in to your ArcGIS organizational account.

   Note:

   If you don't have an organizational account, you can sign up for an ArcGIS free trial.

2. On the ribbon, click the Map tab.

   

   Note:

   Depending on your organizational and user settings, you may have opened Map Viewer Classic. ArcGIS Online offers two map viewers for viewing, using, and creating maps. For more information on the map viewers available and which to use, please see this FAQ.

   This lesson uses Map Viewer.

3. If necessary, in the pop-up window, click Open in new Map Viewer or on the ribbon, click Open in new Map Viewer.

   Map Viewer opens.

4. Zoom to Europe by clicking the Zoom In and Zoom Out buttons and pan the map by dragging the map.

   

   Tip:

   You can also zoom by scrolling your mouse wheel or press Shift and draw a box around the area you want to zoom to.

   Panning changes the extent of the map, while zooming changes the scale. Next, you'll change the basemap, to have a different view of the earth while you explore.

5. On the Contents (dark) toolbar, click the Basemap button.

   

   The Basemap pane appears.

6. In the Basemap pane, choose Imagery Hybrid.

   

7. Explore the new basemap by zooming and panning.

   As you zoom in, more labels appear, and the imagery is replaced by more detailed versions. The basemap is a multiscale map, meaning that it shows different information at different scales.

8. On the Settings (light) toolbar, click the Search button.

   

   The search bar appears in the upper right corner of the map.

9. In the search bar, type Eiffel Tower and press Enter.

   

   The map zooms to Paris and a pop-up appears over the Eiffel Tower.

   

Mark locations

The earth is a big place. Next, you'll mark some locations so you can more easily find them again.

1. On the Contents toolbar, click Add and choose Sketch layer.

   

   The Sketch layer pane appears and the pointer changes to a plus sign. By default, in the Sketch layer pane, for Draw features, the Stamp symbol is selected.

   
2. In the Stamp pane, in the Symbols section, choose a pin of your choice.
   
3. For Size, type 30.
   
4. In the Fill section, for Colors, choose blue.
   
5. In the imagery, click the Eiffel Tower to add a point to represent its location.

   

   In the Layers pane, a layer named Sketch layer is added.

   

6. In the Stamp pane, click Done and close the Sketch layer pane.
7. On the Settings toolbar, click the Search button.
8. In the search bar, type Paris and press Enter.

   The map zooms out to show the city.

9. On the Contents toolbar, click the Bookmarks button and click Add bookmark.

   

10. For Title, type Paris and click Add.

    

11. Close the Bookmarks pane and the pop-up.

    Now that you've marked locations in two ways, you'll navigate to them.

12. On the Settings toolbar, search for Eiffel tower and press Enter.

    The map zooms to the Eiffel Tower. It may have zoomed in too far.

13. Zoom in until the Eiffel Tower is more visible.

    

14. On the ribbon, click the Bookmarks button and click Paris.

    The map zooms back out to show the extent of the city.

    

Add layers

Maps are made up of layers of data. You can add layers from different sources, for example, files stored on your computer, or data hosted on ArcGIS Online. The basemap you changed is one kind of layer, and the map note you added is another. Next, you'll add a layer from ArcGIS Living Atlas of the World.

1. In the Contents pane, click theAdd button and choose Browse layers.

   

   The Browse layers pane appears.

2. In the Browse layers pane, click My Content and in the drop-down list, select Living Atlas.
3. In the search bar, type fontaines Paris and press Enter.
4. Locate the layer named Fontaines sur l'espace public à Paris and click the Add button to add the layer to the map.

   

   More than 1,000 points appear on the map.

   This layer contains data of water fountains in public spaces in the city. It is provided by the city's water department—Mairie de Paris / Direction de la Propreté et de l'Eau—through Esri France.

5. On the Contents toolbar, click the Layers button to return to the Layers pane.
6. On the map, click any point in the Fontaines layer.

   

   A pop-up appears, providing more information about each water fountain, including its address. The informational elements that are tied to each location are called attributes.

7. Close the pop-up.

Save the map

You may want to continue adding layers, but you'll save the map before making any further changes.

1. On the Contents toolbar, click Save and open and click Save.

   

2. For Title, type Paris, France, followed by your name or initials.
3. For Tags, type location, Eiffel Tower, water fountains, and press Enter.

   Three tags are created.

4. For Summary, type Map of Paris, showing the location of the Eiffel Tower, and of public water fountains.

   

5. Click Save map.

   The map is saved to your ArcGIS Online account.

6. On the ribbon, next to the map title, click the options button and choose Content.

   

   The Content page appears. Your Paris, France map is listed at the top of the list.

   

In this lesson, you learned how to navigate a map by panning, zooming, and searching. You learned how to mark locations with map notes and with bookmarks. You learned how to change the basemap layer and add layers to a map. Finally, you learned how to save a map and locate it on the Content page.

Using the same methods, create a map of another location, for example, your home.

You can find more lessons in the Learn ArcGIS Lesson Gallery.

Acknowledgements

• Water fountain data from Mairie de Paris / Direction de la Propreté et de l'Eau, via Esri France.
• Adapted from a lesson by Kathryn Keranen, teacher, author, and cofounder of the award-winning Geospatial Semester.